Bill Belichick Has Cringey Exchange With Reporter On Whether QB is a ‘Dirty Player’

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick got into an awkward and cringe exchange with a reporter after being asked whether quarterback Mac Jones is a “dirty” player.

In Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, linebacker Germain Pratt recovered a Patriots’ fumble and headed for the endzone. Jones ran to try and make the tackle, but when he realized he would catch Pratt, he decided to dive at Bengals cornerback Eli Apple‘s legs. After the game, Apple called the move “dirty.”

A reporter pressed Belichick on it Friday at a press conference, and the head coach wanted no part of it.

“Speaking for yourself, do you think Mac, in your experiences, is a dirty player?” the reporter asked.

“Yeah, I’m not going to sit up here and comment. I mean, we could go through the rest of the roster and ask same questions about different things about players, so I’m not gonna get into that,” Belichick said.

The reporter pushed back, saying it’s essential to know the head coach’s opinion about Jones. Belichick would still not take the bait.

“Right now, my focus is on the Miami Dolphins,” Belichick dodged. “It’s not on some other game, some other play, some other year, what somebody else said or didn’t say. We’re trying to get ready for the Dolphins, so that’s where it’s at. So honestly, I don’t even think about those things.”

A few moments of silence went by, and then the reporter was back for more, but in very Bill Belichick fashion, the coach cut the question off to repeat himself about where his focus is.

“Again, I’m thinking about the Dolphins,” Belichick said again. “That’s really what I’m thinking about. So I’m not going to go into last year, somebody else’s comment, some other game, and some other situation. I don’t know, whatever it is, is. Whatever was called was called; that’s what it is. I’m on to the Dolphins. So I’ll do as good as a job as I can to prepare our team for that, and that’s what it’s gonna be.”

“Do you think you’re alienating your quarterback when I ask if he’s dirty, and you don’t say yes or no?” The reporter asked.

Belichick claimed that he had an excellent relationship with all the players on his team.

“I feel very comfortable with my relationship with every coach, every staff member, that’s what you’re asking,” Belichick added. “I feel very comfortable with every one of them, so that’s what I base it on. Not what someone else thinks, or what someone else says. I base my relationships on my direct relationship with that person. That’s what I feel is important.”

Belichick finished the exchange with the reporter and exited stage right.

The league has imposed an $11,000 fine on Jones for the low block on Apple.

Watch the awkwardness above via New England Patriots.